Worth It
by whatwouldelenado
Summary: Location: Mystic Falls. Year: 2016. Damon and Elena are end-game, as I'm sure most of you would agree. But what about sweet Stefan? Is it fair that his brother stole the woman he was in love with away from him? Stefan has been struggling with this loss for years now and is about to bite the bullet when he meets Erika and everything changes. But will Damon ruin everything? Again?
1. Epilogue

Epilogue

"It's your choice," he shrugged. "You can continue with your worthless life or you can become someone who actually matters."

I bit my lip, knowing that I had to make a decision - and quickly.

I glanced around, taking in the scene. We were in an alleyway in a small town outside of Mystic Falls. You could hear families walking down the sidewalk, talking and laughing, just a few steps away from us. It was broad daylight... But Damon didn't care. The only things that Damon has ever cared about were himself and Elena. At least, that is how it appeared to me...

Looking back over the last 21 years of my life, I knew that I had never really been alive until Stefan. My life was a boring routine and I never switched things up. Every choice that I made was laid out for me, and I picked it up and carried it without question.

If I choose to stay the Erika that I am now then I will have to continue the path that was already laid out for me, but if I allow Damon to create a new 'me', I can create my own forever, with Stefan by my side.

What would I really be missing out on, anyway?

"Okay. I'm ready."


	2. Hello Stranger

p style="text-align: center;"strongspan style="text-decoration: underline;"Chapter One/span/strong/p  
p style="text-align: center;"Erika's POV/p  
p style="text-align: center;" /p  
p style="text-align: center;"emToday is a new day,/em I reassure myself, emand it has the potential to be a great one./em/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I have been trying to convince myself of this daily for over 6 months. So far it hasn't worked... This past year has been the hardest one I have ever faced and I haven't been able to bear the thought that things could get any worse than they have thus far./p  
p style="text-align: center;"This year, my body was a mural. I am littered with scars from old hurts. I am a living tapestry of near-misses and inner fights./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I have not had it easy. It has to go up from here./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I mosey out of bed, trip down my stairs, and head straight for my Keurig. I know that I can't make it through today without a cup of coffee, or two./p  
p style="text-align: center;"After I finish, I go back upstairs to shower and get dressed for yet another monotonous day of working a job that I hate. It gets old, y'know, following after your parents' expectations. I wasn't made to be a doctor, I wish that they understood that./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I throw on my scrubs, toss my hair up into a messy bun, and head off to work./p  
p style="text-align: center;"As I walk into the front doors of the hospital, I hear a shout./p  
p style="text-align: center;""Finally you're here, Erika! We've been trying to call you for over an hour! We have another case of a patient that has been attacked by an animal. We need you to get in the exam room pronto!"/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I wash my hands quickly, run into the exam room, and begin to check vitals and get the patient prepped for sutures. What a way to start my Monday./p  
p style="text-align: center;"As the work day comes to a close, 10 hours later, I can feel my body loosen up a bit and my heart rate go back to normal. Feminally./em/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I walk up to the nurses' station to make them aware that I am heading out./p  
p style="text-align: center;""If there's anything else that you need from me, I'd ask now. I'm out of here in ten minutes sharp, I have to get changed and meet Jeremiah for dinner," I tell them, with a smile on my face./p  
p style="text-align: center;"This is the one thing I have been looking forward to all week. Jeremiah and I have been together for 4 and a half years. He is also a doctor along with the son of my father's best friend, Hugh. He is everything that my Dad ever dreamed that a man would be, and he was my best friend./p  
p style="text-align: center;"Once the head nurse Alison gives me an okay to head out, I rush out the front doors and jump into my SUV. I look at the clock in my car and realize that I am supposed to be at Mystic Grill in 10 minutes. This is the first time that Jeremiah has visited me in Mystic Falls... I cannot be late./p  
p style="text-align: center;"Semhoot!/em/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I step on the gas and rush to the nearest gas station. Running inside, I wave hello to the cashier, and flee into the bathroom to change into my maxi dress and let my hair fall down my back. Jeremiah always throws a fit when I have my hair up, he doesn't understand why I let it grow to be so long if I never style it... He also doesn't like when the tattoo on the back of my neck shows. I love it, though./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I look down at my phone, realizing I now have 3 minutes to get to Mystic Grill. I scurry out the restroom door and jump back into my vehicle. I reach my destination just in time./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I walk into the Mystic Grill and take a seat to the left of the restaurant, where Jeremiah would probably prefer to sit. He is an avid people watcher, and the left side holds a window that he can look out while we enjoy our meal. I want tonight to be perfect, so I try to do everything just the way that he likes./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I look down at my phone once more to see that it's 10 past 8 and we were supposed to meet at 7:45. Jeremiah is always early. His mantra is, "If you're on time, you're late."/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I text him and ask where he is, hoping to get a response back soon, because I'm starting to worry./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I sit there and wait... and wait... and wait some more. The waitresses keep swarming around me, asking if I am ready for the check, with looks similar to pity on their faces. I assure them that my date is coming, and that they need not worry, they will get paid well./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I look down at my phone again and see that the clock now says 9:48. He's over two hours late, and I haven't gotten so much as a text. I decide to check his Twitter, as he's an avid tweeter. I see that his last tweet was four minutes ago, talking about a wild party and how he loves body shots./p  
p style="text-align: center;"Tears begin to fill my eyes as I realize the reason he has been acting so distant. He's done with me. He doesn't want me anymore./p  
p style="text-align: center;"One of the waitresses comes back to the table once more, "Are you sure you aren't ready for the check, ma'am?"/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I open my mouth to accept the offer of a check, when a gorgeous man sits down across from me./p  
p style="text-align: center;""Sorry I'm late baby, the traffic was crazy in the city, I got here as soon as I could."/p  
p style="text-align: center;" /p  
p style="text-align: center;"-/p  
p style="text-align: center;"DISCLAIMERS:/p  
p style="text-align: center;"1) I do not own The Vampire Diaries or Keurig. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"2) This is the first story I have posted on this site in years. Please take it easy on me. :) /p 


	3. Worth Living For

p style="text-align: center;"span style="text-decoration: underline;"strongChapter 2/strong/span/p  
p style="text-align: center;"emStefan's POV/em/p  
p style="text-align: center;"Could my life get any worse? Seriously? /p  
p style="text-align: center;"I've been struggling with the fact that Elena left me for my brother for way too long and I decided that today I was going to end it. I had the chance to experience that love that everybody talks about, even if it was temporary, what else could I live for now? /p  
p style="text-align: center;"It beings to pour outside. I decide that seeing as I love the rain, I'll head into Mystic Grill and watch it pour to calm my nerves. Crazy, right? A vampire has to sit in a restaurant and watch rain fall to calm down because he's going to off himself - never needing rain to calm himself down when he's about to end someone else's life./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I walk into Mystic Grill and hear the waitstaff talking in the kitchen. /p  
p style="text-align: center;""She's been out there for over two hours and all she's ordered is a scotch. We really need to clear that table, we're losing business. It's pretty clear that her date isn't going to show up." /p  
p style="text-align: center;"I look over at my favorite table, all the way on the left, where the window is. I see the girl that they must be talking about, sitting alone, staring out the window, empty glass that I am assuming was filled with scotch moments before. One of the waitresses walks out of the back and starts going towards her table, so I decide to make my move. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"I slide down in the seat across from her and say, "Sorry I'm late baby, the traffic was crazy in the city, I got here as soon as I could." /p  
p style="text-align: center;"She looks up, a look of curiosity on her face. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"I whisper to her, "My name is Stefan, go with it. And whoever left you here sitting alone is a douchebag."/p  
p style="text-align: center;"She smiles and looks at the waitress, "I assured you he would show up. He's rarely ever late, but when he is, he's got a good excuse. If you'd like to come back in a moment, I'm sure we will be ready to order."/p  
p style="text-align: center;"The waitress purses her lips, nods, and walks back towards the kitchen./p  
p style="text-align: center;"The girl looks back at me, "Thank you for doing that. You didn't have to. I was just about to leave and-"/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I decide I don't need her explanation./p  
p style="text-align: center;""Don't mention it. I wouldn't leave you sitting here alone. Besides, you're at my favorite table and I could use the company. Although, it may benefit the both of us if I know your name... and why you've been sitting here alone for over two hours."/p  
p style="text-align: center;"She bites her lip and looks away briefly, "My name is Erika, and I was waiting on my boyfriend. He wasn't responding to calls or texts but he was tweeting about some party that he was at... He wasn't going to come. He's done with me. I didn't mean to gush at you like that. We've been together for almost five years and I just didn't expect it to end this way."/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I place my hand on top of hers and feel chills throughout my entire body almost instantly. I have never felt anything like this before, what the hell is going on? /p  
p style="text-align: center;""I'm sorry that you had to go through that. I can't believe people can be such dicks sometimes. I would love to buy you dinner if you're feeling up for it. Like I said, I could use the company anyhow, and it seems as though you could as well." /p  
p style="text-align: center;"She gives me a small smile, and places her hands on her lap. /p  
p style="text-align: center;""That would be lovely." /p  
p style="text-align: center;"We sit at the table and talk for hours until the staff comes over to our table and tells us that they are closing and, "you don't have to go home, but you can't stay here."/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I look at her, feeling my stomach drop, knowing that tonight has to come to an end. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"She stands up quickly, apologizes to the staff, puts her jean jacket on, and smiles at me. /p  
p style="text-align: center;""Thank you so much for tonight. I needed that."/p  
p style="text-align: center;"And with that, she walks out the door. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"I didn't even get to tell her I appreciated that, I didn't get to ask for her number, I couldn't even ask to see her again. She was gone. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"I pay for our meals and go home. Erika is on my mind all night long. I can't stop thinking about her hazel eyes with those beautiful specks of gold, or the way her nose crinkles up when she laughs, or even the way that she can't say a word moving her hands./p  
p style="text-align: center;"Maybe there is more for me to "live" for, after all.../p 


	4. Blue Eyes

p style="text-align: center;"span style="text-decoration: underline;"strongChapter Three/strong/span/p  
p style="text-align: center;"emErika's POV/em/p  
p style="text-align: center;"My alarm goes off once again to remind me that I'm in for another day of my routine. I shut it off and get myself ready for the day: physically and mentally. I grab a couple of slices of toast for the road and head off to work, again. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"I can't stop thinking about last night. Stefan was so sweet. Never in my wildest dreams would I have expected such a gorgeous stranger to swoop down out of nowhere and save me from utter humiliation when Jeremiah stood me up. That's the kind of thing that you see in a movie or a romance novel, not real life. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"As I pull into my parking spot, I decide to do what has to be done. There's no use putting it off. I pick up my cell phone and dial a number, waiting for an answer. /p  
p style="text-align: center;""Hello, thanks for calling Mystic Falls Medical Center Emergency Room, this is Allie." /p  
p style="text-align: center;""Hi Allie, this is Dr. Stamos. I'm going to need you to call whoever is on-call. I have to take today off. I have some personal issues I must attend to. Sorry for any inconvenience." /p  
p style="text-align: center;"Before she can answer, I hang up./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I run back to my house, change into a cute romper, braid my hair into a fishtail quickly, throw on a pair of flip flops, and jump in my vehicle. I'm going to go see Jeremiah. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"There's roughly a two hour drive between Mystic Falls and Jeremiah's practice. The entire drive there, all I can see is Stefan's smile, and I know that I'm making the right decision. I can't believe I'm doing this after almost five years, but I don't think you get an opportunity like this one more than once in a lifetime, so I have to run with it./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I hope Stefan is as crazy about me as I am about him. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"I finally arrive at Jeremiah's practice and go inside. I ask Molly, the head receptionist, to let Jeremiah know that I have arrived and I need to see him. I take it upon myself to head back to his office, where I know he'll be going over charts./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I let myself in and sit down. /p  
p style="text-align: center;""We need to talk, Jeremiah."/p  
p style="text-align: center;""Okay, baby. What's going on?"/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I look at him, feeling no sadness or pain like I would have expected to, "You stood me up last night. I waited for you for over two hours. I would have waited longer had I not seen your tweets about that crazy party at Tyler's."/p  
p style="text-align: center;"His eyes got big, "I completely forgot that we had plans, Erika."/p  
p style="text-align: center;""I texted and called you numerous times. I'm not here for excuses or even to argue. I just figured I should look you in the eyes when I tell you that it's done. I think it's been done for a while, but I decided that I deserve closure." /p  
p style="text-align: center;"I could tell he was about to vomit excuse after excuse and I was not about to let that happen. /p  
p style="text-align: center;""I'm leaving. Don't try to reach me."/p  
p style="text-align: center;"Having said all that needed to be said, I pick up my keys and walk out the door of Jeremiah Carson's practice for the last time. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"When I finally make it to my SUV, I see a stranger with the most piercing blue eyes I have ever seen leaning on it, staring at me. /p  
p style="text-align: center;""May I help you?" I ask him, thinking that he must be confused or lost./p  
p style="text-align: center;""I'm assuming that you're Erika." He smirks./p  
p style="text-align: center;" "You're special." He walks over to me and brushes my bangs out of my face. "I can see why he chose you."/p  
p style="text-align: center;" /p 


	5. Oh Brother

p style="text-align: center;"strongspan style="text-decoration: underline;"Chapter Four/span/strong/p  
p style="text-align: center;"emStefan's POV/em/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I decided to go back to the Mystic Grill after I woke up, hoping that she would be there again, with no such luck. I brought my journal along this time to write down the way that she made me feel, my favorite traits of hers, and what we talked about. I didn't want to lose a moment of last night, after all, it's what kept me alive last night. Well, as alive as a dead man can be./p  
p style="text-align: center;"In the middle of writing, I feel my phone vibrate. I pick it up to see a text from Damon. /p  
p style="text-align: center;""I found your little girlfriend. I can see why you chose her. Great ass."/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I can feel my blood beginning to boil as I text him back, "Don't you dare hurt her. Just because Elena is gone for a while doesn't mean you can take out your emotions on an innocent woman. Where is she?"/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I close my journal, jump out of my seat, and briskly walk out the door. There's no time to waste. When Damon is emotional, there's no saying what he'll do. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"I feel the vibration once more so I look down at my phone, "Relax, brother, she's fine. She's on her way to The Mystic Grill now... ;)"/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I close my eyes, knowing that he's done something. But what? /p  
p style="text-align: center;"Heading back into the Mystic Grill, I decide to wait there for her, to make sure that she's okay and to figure out what my demon spawn of a brother did to her. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"She comes into the Mystic Grill and doesn't even glance at me, she descends directly over to the seat she sat in last night, and orders a gin. I walk over to her, "Hi, Erika."/p  
p style="text-align: center;"She looks up at me, confused. /p  
p style="text-align: center;""Hi? Can I help you?"/p  
p style="text-align: center;"Damn it, Damon. Of course he compelled her to forget me. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"emThink fast, Stefan.../em/p  
p style="text-align: center;""Oh, I'm sorry. I completely forgot to introduce myself. My name is Stefan. I'm new around here and was told that you'd be a good tour guide."/p  
p style="text-align: center;"She smiles, "It's nice to meet you, Stefan. Where did you move here from?"/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I decide in that moment that hearing this beautiful girl say my name is my favorite sound./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I struggle coming up with something, "I came from New Orleans." /p  
p style="text-align: center;""I've always wanted to visit there. I'm sure it's beautiful. Well, welcome to Mystic Falls, Stefan! There isn't much here, but it's a great town. Everybody knows everybody and all in all, it's a pretty peaceful place. I'm sure you'll like it here."/p  
p style="text-align: center;"I grin at her, "I can't imagine not falling in love with it. It seems very charming." /p  
p style="text-align: center;"I think of a solution. I'm a freaking genius. Yes!/p  
p style="text-align: center;""I'll make you a deal. If you show me around Mystic Falls, I'll give you a beautiful antique from New Orleans. What do you say?" /p  
p style="text-align: center;""Oh, I can show you around, certainly! I don't need you to give me any gifts, I'd be happy to, free of charge. /p  
p style="text-align: center;""Well, you might change your mind once you see what I am offering," I smile once again. /p  
p style="text-align: center;""We will see! I have to head out and take care of some business, would you like to meet back here at 8? I can show you around, and they are supposed to be setting off fireworks at 9." /p  
p style="text-align: center;""I'll see you here at 8, Erika. Thank you." I head out the door and rush over to Bonnie's house. /p  
p style="text-align: center;""Bonnie, I need you to do something for me."/p 


End file.
